“There are minors there, but I am unable to indicate how many,” the ministry’s spokesperson Maciej Wewiór told TV Republika. Asked whether the Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs would organize a partial evacuation – including children or other individuals requiring care – he admitted that, for now, no such decisions have been made.
Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has no information about Polish citizens harmed in connection with the operation carried out by the United States and Israel against Iran.
At the same time, the ministry reports that the number of Poles currently staying in the conflict zone may reach into the thousands. Precise estimates are lacking because not everyone is registered in the Odyseusz system.
TV Republika asked the Foreign Ministry about Polish children currently staying in areas that could become targets of retaliatory actions by Iran.
“There are minors there, but I am unable to indicate how many,” spokesperson Maciej Wewiór told TV Republika.
He explained the reason behind the ministry’s limited knowledge: “We only have information about individuals who are registered in the Odyseusz system. We know only approximately how many people are currently staying there (in countries with a potential threat of military operations – ed.). It may turn out that some parents did not register their children in the system, but only themselves.”
He assured that Poland’s consular service is focused on providing assistance to those most in need. “There are situations where someone is running out of medication. We have launched local hotlines – for example in the United Arab Emirates or in Qatar,” he told TV Republika.
Asked whether the Foreign Ministry would organize a partial evacuation – including children or other individuals requiring care – he admitted that, for now, no such decisions have been made.
He recommended that Poles staying in the Gulf countries remain where they are: “It is much safer to stay in place rather than move around. The United Arab Emirates is gradually reopening its airspace, but these are several-hour ‘slots’ during which individual aircraft are allowed to depart.”
“We appeal to our citizens to ensure that, apart from documents and medication, they have charged phones and their airline cards with them. We have received signals that some people missed their flights due to discharged phones,” he added.
“Airlines are beginning to contact their customers and invite them onto flights operating within these individual slots,” Wewiór said.
“We are preparing for every possible scenario as the situation develops. We are monitoring everything on an ongoing basis. We recommend leaving these countries via commercial flights, but at the same time we advise against traveling there,” the Foreign Ministry spokesperson concluded.